Bush's adviser linked to CIA leak

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US President George Bush's right-hand man, Karl Rove, is at the
centre of the controversy over who revealed the name of a CIA agent
after Newsweek revealed that he was a source for a story
that appeared in Time magazine and for which two reporters
are facing prison.

In a development that could damage the Bush Administration, two
lawyers close to the case said emails between the Time
reporter who wrote the story and his editors indicate that the
reporter spoke to Mr Rove.

Mr Rove's lawyer, Robert Luskin, confirmed that his client had
been interviewed by Matthew Cooper for the article, but denied that
Mr Rove provided the crucial information that exposed the agent's
identity.

But the two lawyers who spoke to Newsweek said there
was growing concern that prosecutors now have their sights set on
Mr Rove, the architect of Mr Bush's rise.

The controversy relates to the leaking of the identity of a CIA
agent, Valerie Plame, whose husband, a former ambassador Joseph
Wilson, went on a CIA-sponsored trip to investigate whether Iraq
was seeking to buy uranium from Niger for nuclear weapons. After
returning, Mr Wilson publicly accused the Bush Administration of
exaggerating the case for going to war.

Annoyed by Mr Wilson's public statements, two unnamed officials
reportedly told columnist Robert Novak that Ms Plame was a CIA
"operative".

Novak published the claims, sparking accusations that an
undercover agent's identity had been disclosed, placing both her
and her sources in danger, for partisan political purposes.

At the time, Mr Wilson said he believed that Mr Rove was the
source, but the accusation was dismissed by the White House as
"totally ridiculous".

It is a crime to knowingly divulge the identity of an undercover
CIA operative and the leak prompted such a row that the Justice
Department appointed a special counsel, Patrick Fitzgerald, to
investigate. Novak is believed to have reached a deal with the
special prosecutor, which is why he is not being pursued by
authorities.

Two other reporters, Cooper from Time magazine and
Judith Miller from The New York Times, who followed up the
story, have been threatened with jail for contempt of court unless
they reveal their sources.

Time has been also charged with contempt and threatened with
huge fines because it was in possession of Cooper's notes that
could be relevant to the case.

Last week the magazine submitted to judicial pressure, against
Cooper's wishes, and handed over the relevant documents to the
judge. Among them were the emails showing that Mr Rove was one of
the sources for the story.

Mr Luskin insists that Mr Rove "did not tell any reporter that
Valerie Plame worked for the CIA".